Newly-elected president of the Netball Federation of Sri Lanka (NFSL) Vajira Nettikumara emphasised that her primary goal is to expedite the training of the national team targeting the 14th Asian Senior Netball Championship in Hong Kong, while changing the game’s landscape.
She made this comment speaking to the media, following her win at the election of office bearers for the sport’s domestic governing body for the 2026-28 term, over her challenger Desika Vitharana, at the Duncan White Auditorium, of the Sports Ministry last afternoon.
“My primary task is to prepare the national team for the Asian Senior Netball Championship in Hong Kong,” she told reporters.
“We also have to change the netball landscape here, and face whatever challenges head on. After all this time, there is a legally elected administration for netball in Sri Lanka. My team’s intention is to create the pathway for our girls to represent the country in international tournaments, while creating the system to uplift the game locally.”
Nettikumara, who gained 16 votes over her rival Desika Vitharana’s four votes in their battle for the local netball plum, stated that Sri Lanka has to aim for top spot at the forthcoming competition and secure their place at the Netball World Cup in Sydney next year.
She stressed that her aim is to seek the assistance of the sports Minister and his officials from the Ministry, in their bid to ensure a long-lasting resurgence in the game locally, which she hoped could also translate onto the international circuit.
The new head of the NFSL, an entrepreneur, also dismissed suggestions in certain quarters that she had scaled the summit of the netball administration sans any genuine background in the sport.
She argued that having been educated at Kalutara Balika MV – a school known as a prominent breeding ground for netball, she had competed both at all-island and district levels and achieved notable success.
She further maintained that she also hails from a sports background having played both table tennis and badminton, and was of the view that she has the chutzpah to tackle the issues at hand as far as the game and its players are concerned.
Nettikumara also asserted that her entrepreneurial background should not be a hindrance to serve the sport during her tenure in office, and rejected claims that she had taken over the netball administration to boost her personal business profile.
She insisted that her experience at management level should stand in good stead as she navigates through the dark and murky waters of domestic netball for the foreseeable future.
Meanwhile, newly-elected secretary of the NFSL and former national captain Damayanthi Jayathilaka, asserted that their foremost challenge is to win the Asian Senior Netball Championship in August and kick start the team’s revival in the international arena.
She added that with that in mind they will be looking to hire a foreign coach for Sri Lanka through the intervention of the Sports Minister, while at the same time seeking to make up for lost time.
Jayathilaka, from the Gampaha District Netball Association overcame Shiromi Kuruppu of the Ratnapura District Netball Association by 17 votes to seven at yesterday’s election.
She remarked that development of netball trainers and umpires also needs to be prioritised and added that they will be looking to address such issues with the Minister concerned and sought the support of the media over the same.
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